Sermon Tone Analysis
Overall tone of the sermon
This automated analysis scores the text on the likely presence of emotional, language, and social tones. There are no right or wrong scores; this is just an indication of tones readers or listeners may pick up from the text.
A score of 0.5 or higher indicates the tone is likely present.
Emotion Tone
Anger
0.13UNLIKELY
Disgust
0.08UNLIKELY
Fear
0.12UNLIKELY
Joy
0.62LIKELY
Sadness
0.51LIKELY
Language Tone
Analytical
0.7LIKELY
Confident
0.02UNLIKELY
Tentative
0UNLIKELY
Social Tone
Openness
0.77LIKELY
Conscientiousness
0.96LIKELY
Extraversion
0.12UNLIKELY
Agreeableness
0.7LIKELY
Emotional Range
0.72LIKELY
Tone of specific sentences
Tones
Emotion
Language
Social Tendencies
Anger
< .5
.5 - .6
.6 - .7
.7 - .8
.8 - .9
> .9
Introduction
Confession
Nehemiah 9:
Prayer of Praise
We are walking into a section of Scripture that is the most comprehensive storyline of the OT in the OT.
Nehemiah 9:
Creation is seen starting with God as Yahweh.
The first sentence mirrors .
“Hear, O Isreal: Yahweh our God, Yahweh is one.”
There is but one God and he stands alone.
This is the basis for prayer and praise.
Creation is seen starting with God as Yahweh.
The first sentence mirrors .
“Hear, O Isreal: Yahweh our God, Yahweh is one.”
There is but one God and he stands alone.
This is the basis for prayer and praise.
Then there is a quick summary of in the rest of verse six.
Praise of God begins by acknowledging that He alone deserves credit for this fantastic world.
Right now think of how beautiful the trees have been during their transition from summer to winter.
How magnificent their beauty, how amazing is the tree that it seemingly dies every year and comes back to life.
And I get annoyed at how many of God’s testimonies I have to clean up.
God deserves praise more than we give Him.
Nehemiah
The Covenant with Abraham is next in the storyline recalled.
How God calls us and recreates us.
Nehemiah 9:
Speaking of Abraham he was found faithful.
puts it this way, “And he believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness.
We have an important connection here.
If you don’t believe that God is the one to be obeyed, you will not carry out the duties given to you.
Faithfulness comes when we believe the one who is over us.
Abraham was righteous by faith and that faith proved itself in action.
He did what God said because He believed God.
How are we doing at believing God is who He says He is?
How are we at being found faithful in action because we trust the one giving us the commands?
Then notice a key theme through this section of praise…You have kept your promise, for You are righteous.
God does all that He says he will do.
This is where belief and faith come together for us.
If we believe God will do all that he says He will do then we will obey all that He says.
Do we trust God and do we believe His promises?
Does your life support your answer?
Next we have the Exodus and Wilderness Wondering.
Nehemiah 9:9-
One of the most historically significant moments for Israel is the deliverance God provided from captivity and the way he guided them to the promised land.
And their history is our history.
We are the people of God.
He did this to our ancestors in the faith.
Deliverance is a key theme in the bible.
Do not allow us to read this story detached.
REMEMBER: this is a prayer of praise where Nehemiah and the people, and we God’s people as well recall the faithfulness of God.
As we move on through the rest of Israel’s and our history in this storyline summary of the Old Testament.
Let us not forget that we too have a history of unfaithfulness.
And perhaps it would be beneficial for us to recall where we come from and how amazing it is that God has brought us to the place where we are.
What makes us worthy of God’s grace?
What makes us worthy of forgiveness?
What made Israel worthy?
Yet God is gracious.
So as we walk through this next section think of how you are like the people in this retelling of the OT and see how good and gracious God is.
Nehemiah
The idea of presumptuously in the verse should be understood as arrogantly.
It is the same word used to describe Egyptians attitudes during the plagues and captivity of the nation of Israel.
What happened the became stiff necked and did not obey God’s commands.
Now remember this society was primarily one of agriculture.
The word picture is of a cow or mule becoming abstinent, refusing to obey the farmer.
Perhaps a good illustration for us is the man or woman refusing to make eye contact when you need to merge in traffic.
Or perhaps it could be compared to the kid who gives you the million mile stare while refusing to heed any command you have given them.
I cannot help but think this imagery is intentional as the golden calf worship will soon be mentioned.
They refused to obey still and take stock of all that God had done for them.
Do you feel conviction over sin?
If not, might I say bluntly that you are doing what the people of God did in this passage.
You are stiff necked, refusing to obey, and not mindful of what God has done for you.
Perhaps the best thing that can be done at this point is for all of us to take stock of all that God has done for us.
Starting from the beginning…God has made you in His image.
What all has He done for you in your life?
I know this much…He has allowed you to have another day to feel your way towards Him.
Recounting all the good things God has done for us brings to bear how heinous all our sin is.
God freed His people from slavery and their response was to appoint a leader and head back to slavery.
This makes no sense
And this is exactly how sin is.
Sin is stupid.
It lures us back with empty promises.
Then sin causes us to be worse off then we were.
What sin do you struggle with?
What seems so good that you keep going back to it?
But we have this beautiful picture of God.
God is ready to forgive, gracious and slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love, not forsaking them.
Don’t believe the lie that God won’t forgive, that His anger burns white hot at you.
Rather replace the lies with truth.
God is ready to forgive…as Isreal heard this, it must have brought comfort, as you hear it, you should be comforted.
In this prayer of praise the Levites leading the people will repeat the cycle of how good God is, how sinful we are, because this pattern is the truth they want the people to grasp.
Life is a struggle with sin, letting it go and embracing the new life we have in Christ.
Nehemiah 9:18-
Nehemiah 9:19
Notice the sin of the people and the goodness of God.
Though they worshipped an image made by their own hands, God led them.
In what ways is God still gracious to us?
What do you have that you don’t deserve?
What have you done that entitles you to anything you have?
At this point in the storyline, the Levites have summarized the first 5 books of the OT.
Now they will move on to Joshua.
< .5
.5 - .6
.6 - .7
.7 - .8
.8 - .9
> .9